Marijuana growing proposed for former factory in Winchendon

WINCHENDON — A factory that gave us the little green plastic parachute man could be going green again as a medical marijuana-growing facility.

Town Manager James M. Kreidler said he has been approached by the Centers for Alternative Medicine about acquiring the former Mylec/ Ray Plastics factory at 157 Mill Circle in Winchendon Springs in order to grow marijuana.

The factory has 100,000 square feet of space. It was originally used for cotton manufacturing and served as the White Woolen Mill. In the 1960s, Ray Plastics made plastic items there, including toy soldiers with attached guns and parachutes. Most recently it has been home to Mylec Sports, a street hockey equipment manufacturer, which in 2011 moved into a new facility on Commercial Drive.

Mr. Kreidler said he welcomes the interest in the factory, even with plans for a less traditional product to be manufactured there.

"We are a right-to-farm community," he said.

Unlike other towns and cities in Central Massachusetts, Winchendon has not enacted a moratorium on marijuana facilities, either for dispensing or growing.

Mr. Kreidler said he was approached a couple of months ago by Josh Resnek, a writer from the Boston area who is serving as a consultant for the nonprofit Centers for Alternative Medicine. Mr. Resnek indicated that the organization was looking at the old factory as a possible growing facility.

Mr. Kreidler said that after looking at the proposal and meeting with members of the group, he is supportive of the project. He said selectmen have not voted, but in talking to individual board members, he believes the board will also be supportive.

"Having had a great deal of contact with Mr. Resnek over the past month, both on site and at (the factory), and in telephone calls, I can say that the business plan they are putting forward is exceptional," he said.

Mr. Kreidler said the reuse of the factory will bring jobs and keep the building, which is more than 150 years old, from deteriorating.

"Mills of that vintage deteriorate quick if they are vacant," he said. "The building will not only be reused, but be renovated."

Mr. Resnek said he found the welcome in Winchendon to be extraordinary. He said he hopes the opening of the business will be mutually beneficial.

"It's about more jobs, paying taxes and giving back to Winchendon," he said.

The operation would be entirely contained in the building and would need to meet all requirements set down by the state.

Mr. Resnek said the group looking to develop the mill includes Dr. Daryl Colden, an ear, nose and throat specialist from Boston's North Shore, and Dr. Guy Navarra, a nutritionist with several clinics and a large private practice along the North Shore. Other principals include Jacob Resnek, Mr. Resnek's son, and Robert Edelstein. He said the group hopes to open a dispensary in Boston that would be supplied by the growing facility in Winchendon.

"We're bringing the mill back to life," he said.

Mr. Resnek said the factory will likely never be used as a factory again, but it can still be put into productive use as a marijuana growing facility.

He said the company had not yet completed an agreement on the dispensary site. He said the group wants it to be in Boston to be closer to its many medical facilities and other facilities that could use its services. He said a dispensary did not fit in Winchendon, which is in a rural area along the New Hampshire border.

Another benefit, along with growing jobs, would be that Mr. Resnek has become interested in setting up some type of museum to highlight the photography of Lewis Hine. Mr. Hine photographed workers in Winchendon and all around the country in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Robert Edelstein, one of the principals of the Centers for Alternative Medicine, said the organization was created after some of its group got in contact with a doctor whose efforts to stop seizures in a young girl by using marijuana were highlighted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN's chief medical correspondent. After seeing his success in helping the girl and looking into the topic further, they formed a group and contacted a consultant from Colorado.

"It's just progressed from there," he said.

Mr. Edelstein said the group found the factory in Winchendon through a friend who had been looking at different factories.

"This may be the perfect place," he said.

The project will not move forward unless the Centers for Alternative Medicine is selected by the end of the year for one of the licenses the state plans to issue for growing and dispensing. The group has a purchase and sale agreement for the property, contingent on the license being issued.

"We feel our chances are very good," Mr. Edelstein said.

Contact George Barnes at george.barnes@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @georgebarnesTG